Watson-Brown Foundation accepting scholarship applications

The Watson-Brown Foun­dation is accepting scholarship applications for the 2013-14 year to help current and incoming college students who show financial need or academic merit.

The foundation will award 200 scholarships worth $3,000 or $5,000 to students in Georgia and South Carolina who will attend a four-year accredited university. Students must apply by Feb. 15.

Sarah Katherine Drury, the foundation’s director of scholarships and alumni relations, said the awards have helped students across the economic and social spectrum since they began in 1970.

“Generally it’s middle-class students who might not qualify for federal financial aid but still need that little boost,” Drury said. “It’s also those who would not be able to afford college at all without the Watson-Brown scholarship.”

Currently, about 850 students from 18 counties receive the funding, including 138 from Richmond, 108 from Columbia and 117 from Aiken.

A committee selects 200 new students a year from a pool of about 1,100 applicants, Drury said. The awards are renewable every year as long as the student maintains a 3.0 GPA.